Adults-only boutique hotel with mid-century soul. Salt-water pool, mountain views, and iconic Palm Springs architecture.
The Monkey Tree Hotel stands on East Racquet Club Road in North Palm Springs, a historic property originally designed in 1960 by Albert Frey, a pioneer of desert modernism. Frey designed the 16-room boutique hotel to handle the overflow from the nearby Racquet Club of Palm Springs, creating a private retreat that quickly drew mid-century Hollywood royalty. Over the decades, the property hosted stars like Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn, Eric Clapton, and Gilda Radner. Local lore and historical sources suggest the property's Presidential Suite served as a private meeting spot for Marilyn Monroe and John F. Kennedy in 1962, with Secret Service agents waiting outside. The hotel's architectural signature is its striking entryway roofline: opposite-angled, slanted white overhangs that spike toward the San Jacinto Mountains, mirroring the geometry of the surrounding peaks.
Following its mid-century heyday, the property underwent several colorful transformations. In the late 20th century, it operated as a clothing-optional gay resort called Legacy, a chapter of its history still visible in the faint blue lettering of the name "Legacy" painted on the bottom of the pool near a submerged bench. It later became the Terra Cotta Inn, a prominent clothing-free resort, before closing in 2015. In 2015, Kathy and Gary Friedle, a couple from Brooklyn (Kathy was a former studio head at the architecture firm Gensler), purchased the property to restore Frey's original vision. They stripped away decades of overgrowth to reveal the clean modernist bones, reinstating the original cheery yellow-and-white color scheme and 1960s-era furnishings. In June 2021, the hotel joined the AvantStay portfolio, which continues to maintain its historic mid-century soul.
Spread across a private one-acre lot, the hotel features 16 individually designed guest rooms and suites, each blending period-appropriate vintage decor with modern comforts. Five of these suites include kitchenettes and wet bars, while others feature private patios. The central courtyard revolves around a large, heated saltwater swimming pool, which is flanked by retro yellow umbrellas and classic lounge chairs. Adjacent to the main pool is the property's unique Scandinavian-style spa, which includes a hot tub, a cold plunge pool, and a dry sauna. Guests can also enjoy a retro-themed living room area with board games, a fireplace, and a Smeg refrigerator stocked with complimentary drinks.
Look closely at the bottom of the saltwater pool near the submerged bench to spot the faint blue lettering of 'Legacy,' a nod to the property's vibrant history as a late-twentieth-century clothing-optional resort.
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